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Trabyna's First Kill
Padak Mrogdish turned out to be a grizzled Orc warrior. He told Trabyna that he was going to Sen'jin Village to visit a friend, so escorting her to The Valley of Trials wasn't really out of his way. Trabyna looked at the aging Orc and wondered how much protection he could offer but as he strode through the Orgimmar Gate he set a brisk pace, proving that appearances were deceptive; getting on in years he might be, stiff and slow he was not. The walk to Razor Hill was uneventful, in fact a little dull as Padak proved to be a rather taciturn companion. They stopped for some lunch, more to escape the blazing heat of the midday sun than from a need to rest. Once on their way again Trabyna got to see the old warrior in action. All of a sudden Padak stopped and raised a finger to his lips. Trabyna followed his gaze and saw a large scorpid heading towards them; she had seen similar creatures in the distance from the safety of Orgrimmar but never this close. All of a sudden Padak charged and, faster than Trabyna's inexperienced eye could follow, swung his sword, despatching the creature with a single blow. It had all happened so fast that Trabyna hadn't had time to feel afraid but as they continued along the road she began to tremble. Padak glanced sideways at her. "Ever seen one up close before?" Trabyna, not trusting her voice, shook her head in reply. Padak chuckled, "You'll be seeing a lot more of those in the next few weeks. In fact, you'll be standing your ground shooting at them as they charge towards you" he told her. He burst out laughing at the look of dismay that passed over Trabyna's face. "Don't worry girl, you'll be despatching them with ease in no time at all. Jen'shan will see to that" "Jen'shan is the hunter trainer?" "She is indeed. A fine Troll huntress; you couldn't ask for a better teacher" Padak told her "Don't be fooled by her easy-going manner, she'll work you half to death and teach you more than you ever than you ever thought possible without you even realising it. What Jen'shan doesn't know about hunting isn't worth knowing."Trabyna was rather taken back by this, the longest speech she had heard yet from her travelling companion. She felt apprehensive yet excited at the prospect of meeting her new teacher. They came to a fork in the road. Padak stopped. "We turn off here to get the Valley of Trials" He nodded his head at the road ahead "Down that way lies Sen'jin Village, it's not far." He set off at a steady pace "Come on girl, step lively, we're almost there". In no time at all a large group of people loomed into view and before she knew it they were standing in front of a tall Troll woman. She turned to Padak, greeting him warmly "Why, 'ello der Padak. Who be dis you bringing me?" she said, casting a shrewd eye over Trabyna. A large smile broke over the crusty warrior's face "This is Trabyna Foebane. Ormak Grimshot asked me to bring her down here to you." He rummaged around in his pack. "He gave me a note to deliver to you" he said, retrieving a crumpled piece of paper and passing it to the Troll. "This is Jen'shan" he said, turning to Trabyna. Jen'shan read the note and raising one eyebrow looked at Trabyna. "Hmm. Me good frien' Ormak tinks you 'ave de makin's of a hunter. 'E not usually wrang" She beamed at Trabyna "Tek yoursel' inta de Den yonder and make yassel' comfortable whilin' I hab a little chat wid me frien' Padak 'ere" she said pointing a hole in the hillside nearby. Trabyna waited patiently in the Den; she found it a comforting place, it reminded her of The Drag in Orgrimmar. Presently Jen'shan came to find her. "You mus' be sumtin' speshaal if'n me ol' frien' Ormak tinks you be wort sendin' ta me. 'E don' trouble hisel' wid anytin' less dan de bes'" Trabyna blushed "Le's set a while gurrl an' ya can tell me aaall about yessel'" Jen'shan hunkered down next to Trabyna and smiled warmly at her. Trabyna looked at the warm, friendly face looking expectantly at her and began to talk. Hesitant at first, she found herself opening up to Jen'shan and talking like she had never talked before. When she finally stopped talking she realised that the sun had set outside the Den and she was starving. "Chil' I don' know yet if'n you any good wit a bow but I tink you got guts, you haff way der already" Jen'shan stood up and stretched. "Le's get sum food and den ya get a good night's sleep - ya haff to be up at sunrise, ya got a looong day ahead'n ye" The next few weeks passed in a blur. Padak had been right about Jen'shan, she worked Trabyna hard, harder than she had ever worked before, but she did it with such gentle warmth that the girl would have willingly jumped off a cliff if she'd been told too. Trabyna blossomed under Jen'shan's tutelage, gaining in confidence and skill. Her self-esteem grew and she no longer wore the beaten look that had troubled Ormak. The days were spent practising archery skills; once Trabyna could hit the target most of the time, Jen'shan taught her how to organise her quiver and she started to practice firing arrows in quick succession. Starting slowly she stood for hours in the burning Durotar sun firing at targets, gradually increasing in speed, stopping only to refill her quiver. Next she started practising on moving targets and once she had mastered that Jen'shan began to teach her how to fight with an axe. The short time that Trabyna could manage to stay awake following her evening meal was spent sitting in the Den with Jen'shan talking. Jen'shan told her a little about the skills she would learn in the future, other times she told Trabyna tales of past adventures, chuckling gently as the girl's eyes widened in amazement. The day came when Jen'shan decided Trabyna was ready to do some real hunting. "Tek yessel' inta de Den chil' and speak wit Gornek, he has a job for ya ta do" Jen'shan smiled to see the eagerness in Trabyna's face. Trabyna ran into the Den searching for Gornek. He told her that they were getting low on meat and he needed her to hunt some of the boar that roamed the valley. Trabyna tucked her axe into her belt, made sure she had plenty of arrows, grabbed her bow and headed into the valley. She soon found a suitable-looking boar. She reached over her shoulder into the quiver for an arrow, fitted it to her bow and drew the bowstring back. The arrow flew through the air, striking the boar. The boar charged straight at her. In the blink of an eye Trabyna's next arrow was flying through the air. The arrow struck the boar, slowing it considerably but still it charged towards her. She didn't have time to loose another arrow before the boar reached her; she pulled the axe from her belt and braced herself. In the back of her mind she could hear Jen'shan's voice warning her that a mortally wounded creature could be the most dangerous of all. As the boar struck she leaped into the air, whirling around, bringing the axe down with all her strength. Without a sound the boar collapsed into the dirt, its blood leaking into the dusty ground. Trabyna stood for a second, stunned. She had done it. She had done it! Her first kill. She was a hunter! She threw back her head and roared at the sky as elation rushed through her. Trabyna had never experienced such a feeling of joy in her life. For the first time ever she felt like she had found her place in the world. She smiled to herself and whispered "Thank you Ormak". Over the course of the day Trabyna slew a dozen boar. After each kill she cleaned and gutted the slain beast, took it back to the Den and solemnly presented it to Gornak. It was late evening when she returned with the last one. As she entered the Den Gornek burst out laughing. "By the Gods girl! Another one? I think you had better stop now, before there are no boar left in the valley" Trabyna blushed, then grinned shyly at him. "Go and clean up, we'll be eating within the hour." Trabyna looked down at herself and realised that she was filthy. There were tears in her leather clothing which was spattered with blood to which the Durotar dust had stuck. She chuckled softly under breath as the thought "If only mother could see me now" flitted through her head. She returned to her quarters to find Jen'shan waiting for her with hot water and clean clothing. Her mentor beamed at her "I t'ought ya might need dese". Trabyna stripped off her clothes and scrubbed the grime off herself. As she washed she discovered lots of small wounds and bruises that she hadn't even noticed she'd acquired. Seemingly out of nowhere Jen'shan produced some salve and showed her how to dress the injuries. Once dressed again she looked ruefully at the pile of discarded clothing; she wasn't sure if it would ever come clean but she wasn't going to worry about it tonight. The delicious aroma of roast pork told her it was time to eat. She followed Jen'shan to the table and took her place with the other inhabitants of the Den. Gornak carried in two huge platters laden with roast pork and set them on the table. Turning to Trabyna he bowed and announced "Friends, the meat at our table tonight has been provided by Durotar's newest hunter, Trabyna", then he saluted her. Everyone around the table stood up and saluted her in unison “Hail, Trabyna!” Trabyna was so overwhelmed, she was unable to speak, contenting herself with a formal bow as her eyes filled with tears. Category:Stories